4:29 AM,
Aug. 3, 2013

The Rev. Stewart Salyer, pastor of Bethel Cumberland Presbyterian Church in Clarksville, Tenn, looks over his sanctuary.

Written by

Tim Parrish
| For Gannett Tennessee

One of the more popular two-word phrases among today's Christian faith traditions is "church plant." Whether denominational or nondenominational, churches like to talk about their church plants, in which a congregation spins off from another larger congregation to start, or plant, a new one.

Many people think church planting is a new concept in Christianity. It is not. In fact, Montgomery County is home to one of the earliest church plants in Middle Tennessee.

In 1852, the pastor of McAdoo Cumberland Presbyterian Church, the Rev. Harris Burney, took a handful of McAdoo church members and ...